Tablets Android tablets are dead

[nickdalzell1]

Nothing to do with shady sites. If there is a remote exploit you‘re screwed. My take is: you are just lucky, probably not a valuable target. I could tell multiple tales about companies that have been targeted successfully. There is a reason why companies have update policies. Or just check how many vulnerabilities there are in Win 7 alone. Nobody would seriously argue its safe to run Win 7. Or any other outdated system for that matter

First of all, what I use is none of your concern. Second of all, what kind of hacker would even bother targeting the 1% of devices used by old curmudgeons such as myself? Third, if you watch any Kitboga stuff, 99% of the scams and hacks revolve around Windows 10. Not so easy to hack or trick grandma if Internet Explorer 6.0 can't render that 'fake virus' pop-up or javascript now is it?

 

[mrkapqa]

delte

 

[Romain_H]

First of all, what I use is none of your concern.

Right. Please quote where I did say anything about what you use.

Plus you are still wrong about „FUD“. I know, because I both exploited computers (as a pentester) as well as saw companies that have been hacked.
There is no FUD, the threat is real. Of course you are free to ignore it, yet its still real

 

[jimimac71]

My Mom’s PC is running Windows 7 (32-bit). A complement to Dell and her 2008 PC. I upgraded it from Vista. Being all thumbs, my brother upgraded the RAM.
She is also a great grandma and I don’t want to take her machine to Windows 10, which does not have her favorite card games.
Sorry Nick. Your Blackberry will stop working tomorrow. <grin>
I can hold my Samsung 10 inch in one hard, but it’s a stretch.
My iPad is too wide.
I prefer a tall and skinny tablet as I’m in portrait mode most of the time.

 

[sunking101]

Meh. All tablets are dead.

 

[Heat_Fan89]

Meh. All tablets are no longer the FAD they used to be.

That's probably the better way to put it. The iPad is being used in retail and in medical applications. Walmart has begun to embrace the iPad in its store operations. Tablets can still provide a lot of value to those who otherwise don't want to deal with the complexities of a PC. If all they want to do are the basics i.e. email, surf the web, send messages, or make video calls via wifi, the tablet fits those applications quite nicely on a much larger screen vs a smartphone.

Samsung has tried to do that with DEX by giving the user the option of trying to make their tablets more like ChromeOS devices.

 

[Awesomesince86]

I still use a tablet everyday. Media consumption on my desk when working.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Tablets do the same tasks for me as they first did when I purchased my first one in 2012. Read e-books, browse websites, play media, play mobile games. I don't see that changing anytime soon. Probably one reason my old tablets still function as well today as they did in 2012.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Sorry Nick. Your Blackberry will stop working tomorrow. <grin>

I don't use a BlackBerry. My Curve died in 2013. It wasn't much of a platform to begin with.

I use a Galaxy Note II as my main line, with a Samsung Galaxy S5 as a backup line/home phone. My most used tablets are my Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 as my ebook reader, and my Galaxy Note 10.1 (2012) for watching YouTube.

Oh, and all of the above are still working. Note II and S5 both getting 5 bars of LTE.

 

[lyunmac]

I use mine to browse the web from the couch, bed, control the lights, play games, read my Kindle, checking out N64 emulators, and some light document editing. Love my Tab S7+ for playing music and movies. I can similar stuff on an iPad pro but not worth the extra cost to me especially when adding the Apple pencil. Maybe my next tablet will be an iPad but for now I'm happy with my Samsung tab.

 

[nickdalzell1]

I have no intentions of buying anything else new. I'm not seeing anything interesting enough to want to buy anything, and I'm now into the whole anti-comsumption stuff. E-waste is a horrid thing and recycling ain't enough. The amount of still-working smartphones and tablets disposed of around here just because 'it doesn't get updates/is too old' is astounding. People need to wake up and realize newer ain't always better. Your fancy dozen-camera remote-control sized phablet is doing the same tasks as the first HTC EVO did in 2011. Get over it folks!

Here's hoping the chip shortage helps curb unfettered consumerism further, and we start appreciating what we already have and take care of it. It's not like devices are making such giant leaps the way they were in 2010, 2011, and 2012. If anything, they've been removing features with every generation, first removable batteries, then headphone jacks, and the list goes on.

 

[Awesomesince86]

I have no intentions of buying anything else new. I'm not seeing anything interesting enough to want to buy anything, and I'm now into the whole anti-comsumption stuff. E-waste is a horrid thing and recycling ain't enough. The amount of still-working smartphones and tablets disposed of around here just because 'it doesn't get updates/is too old' is astounding. People need to wake up and realize newer ain't always better. Your fancy dozen-camera remote-control sized phablet is doing the same tasks as the first HTC EVO did in 2011. Get over it folks!

Here's hoping the chip shortage helps curb unfettered consumerism further, and we start appreciating what we already have and take care of it. It's not like devices are making such giant leaps the way they were in 2010, 2011, and 2012. If anything, they've been removing features with every generation, first removable batteries, then headphone jacks, and the list goes on.

So let me get this straight...you came to a tech forum where people discuss cell phones and tablets to tell us all we shouldn't be buying cell phones and tablets.

Is it hard to reach the keyboard from on your high horse?

 

[nickdalzell1]

So let me get this straight...you came to a tech forum where people discuss cell phones and tablets to tell us all we shouldn't be buying cell phones and tablets.

Is it hard to reach the keyboard from on your high horse?

Tell this to the PowerPC forum. Also, buying used cell phones/tablets both helps reduce consumption as well as helps the planet out. Do we really need new things anymore? especially when the new things are losing features these days?

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, in that order.

 

[jimimac71]

So let me get this straight...you came to a tech forum where people discuss cell phones and tablets to tell us all we shouldn't be buying cell phones and tablets.

Is it hard to reach the keyboard from on your high horse?

This thread is about Android tablets being dead. I agree with Nick about getting life from a product. My PC is a 2014 Pentium AIO. It is Microsoft who won't let me keep it going with Windows 11. I still have almost 4 years let of service from Windows 10.
Mom's PC is 2008 as is her Brother printer. Still works and buying all 4 inks costs more than a new printer. But it still works.

 

[nickdalzell1]

The funny thing is, you don't need the latest OS to keep enjoying what you got. In fact, updating all the time only reduces performance in the long run. Just stop stressing over it and enjoy it. I don't stress over what version of Android or Linux or app that any device I got runs anymore. I just 'tap an app and enjoy'. It's really that simple. Once I have everything set up the way I prefer, from wallpaper, to app and widget layouts, and versions I am familiar with (I got a ton of my favorites backed up on a local NAS so they don't vanish into thin air with time, many of them apps that I paid for years ago and whose modern versions now are a stupid subscription model, yet the old version runs just fine) I just leave everything be. I disable the Play Store and any app stores, and just use it, confident that nothing changes or moves the buttons around. That way I can live stress free and just enjoy the devices. I take great care of them too, so they don't break or degrade. I probably have the only Galaxy S5 with the USB cover intact.

A device doesn't instantly become a paperweight just because the OEM or app developer stops supporting it. In fact, the Power PC area of this forum proves that more than anything I do with 'ancient' versions of Android. I do wish they'd add in more 'classic' forums, such as those for non-Apple phones/tablets/OS and non-Apple hardware. I used to be a member of a mailing list/bbs ages ago, called 'Survivor PC' where folks found trashed or dumped hardware and made it work with its original OS and keep it relevant in the modern era. There were folks doing email, web browsing and ethernet broadband with 8088 XTs.

 

[CheesegraterMac]

9

Android tablets are dead partly because Apple was better at making and marketing tablets. The iPad might have suffered the same fate if not for Apple finding creative ways to continue using their tablets.

But keep in mind that tablets partly faltered just like Apple’s iPod because another device made it redundant. Phones are now much bigger and you don’t have to worry about lack of internet access and you can carry your oversized phone with you and it does so much more than any Android tablet.

I believe you can take and make calls on the iPad but I could be wrong about that. The iPad’s day in the sun will come one day but not just yet.

Only internet calls on cellular models.

 

[sracer]

Compared to my iPad, I love my Samsung Galaxy Tab A so much more. Everything I need done is faster and easier with my Galaxy. Because my iPad is from 2019, it has just 32 GB RAM. But I saved $120 by going refurbished.
My Samsung is 64 GB and has a micro SD card slot.
The Google Play Store is all new in appearance and I like it.
I use Malwarebytes on my Android tablets. The app is stupid for my iPad.
I will not sell my iPad until I can get a fair price based on it's age, etc.
Some time ago, my brother, an IT guy, said: "Get a Chromebook."
I shoulda listen.
A 2 in 1 Chromebook can do what I want. A desktop Google browser, right?
I believe there is access to Linux apps. Everything on my tablet now from the Google Play Store.
So the Android tablet isn't dead or dying, but Chrome devices will probably keep growing fast.
This is the best Android thread!
To think it's on a Mac site!

I heavily use chromebooks in addition to Windows, Linux, and Mac OS devices. Chromebooks are inferior to Android tablets for working with local files on the device itself. CrOS (Chrome OS) sandboxes the Android filesystem from the local CrOS file system and from the Google Drive filesystem.

This makes for a WORSE user experience than iOS because there is no overarching file tool like Files.app on iOS.

The idea of using Linux on chromebooks is appealing in theory, but in practice it is a bit of a mess. The Linux filesystem is also sandboxed from the rest of the files on the device. Linux apps are unstable and a CrOS update can corrupt the Linux container that renders the Linux apps unusable.

Having said that, I love chromebooks and use them for those workflows and use cases where they shine over the other operating platforms.

But for a more overall desktop-like experience, I find my Galaxy Tab S6 w/DeX to better than chromebooks.

As for great Android discussion threads on MacRumors, absolutely. MR is a great community and this is why most of my productive conversations on Android take place here rather than on Android-centric sites.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Still wish there were a 'classic alternatives to iOS' and a 'classic non-Apple hardware' forum like we got with the PowerPC forum.

I hate to believe I'm the only one rescuing and making use of old smartphones/tablets.

 

[Blue Quark]

I toyed with the idea for years of buying an iPad, but their price points always put me off. Honestly, they still do.

I wound up buying a Galaxy Tab A7 on Cyber Monday of 2020, and I'm much more comfortable with that. When I bought my M1 MBA, I'd looked at the iPad Air and couldn't understand why anyone would buy one of those when for the same kind of money would get you a full-blown computer.

Well, now I own a tablet and a laptop, and I'm trying to get to where I use both more.

 

[nickdalzell1]

I use the tablet (Note 10.1) to watch YouTube and play some classic mobile games to pass time. I use my laptop (Toshiba from 2012 running Linux) to post to forums like this one, read reddit posts, and enjoy YouTube Music occasionally. I use my 7" Galaxy Tab 2 to read ebooks. There's use cases for both tablets and laptops. One can't practically take the place of another. That is a pipe dream that only ends in disappointment. Trying to do pro work like multi-page Word documents or spreadsheets on a tablet is as painful as typing up a novel on a BlackBerry Bold.

 

[jimimac71]

I heavily use chromebooks in addition to Windows, Linux, and Mac OS devices. Chromebooks are inferior to Android tablets for working with local files on the device itself. CrOS (Chrome OS) sandboxes the Android filesystem from the local CrOS file system and from the Google Drive filesystem.

This makes for a WORSE user experience than iOS because there is no overarching file tool like Files.app on iOS.

The idea of using Linux on chromebooks is appealing in theory, but in practice it is a bit of a mess. The Linux filesystem is also sandboxed from the rest of the files on the device. Linux apps are unstable and a CrOS update can corrupt the Linux container that renders the Linux apps unusable.

Having said that, I love chromebooks and use them for those workflows and use cases where they shine over the other operating platforms.

But for a more overall desktop-like experience, I find my Galaxy Tab S6 w/DeX to better than chromebooks.

As for great Android discussion threads on MacRumors, absolutely. MR is a great community and this is why most of my productive conversations on Android take place here rather than on Android-centric sites.

I briefly looked up DeX. I guess it does more than just provide HDMI.
Amazon tablets no longer cast to a streaming device, including my original 2017 Fire tablet.
Nothing streams to Apple TV that doesn’t have an Apple logo.
My Samsung Galaxy Tab A streams to my Roku and Fire TV stick.
Linux always kicks my backside. I’ve recently learned newer Chrome devices can install Linux apps.
The videos I’ve seen are from 2020 and Linux was still in Beta.
I’m not convinced the Play Store is a plus for a Chrome device. Maybe a tablet or 2 in 1.
Some lazy developers make phone only portrait mode apps.
For me, installing desktop Linux apps on a Chrome device would work for me, instead of trying to learn Linux.
I’m not a fan of the Chrome browser. I prefer Firefox.
Don’t want a bunch of Linux apps.
Do not want a Mac or Windows box. Chrome is hopefully an easier alternative to going all in on Linux.
Still want a desktop screen some of the time, with keyboard and mouse.
Typing this on my iPad and predictive text stinks. I should consider turning it off.

 

[nickdalzell1]

The only thing I remember about Dex was during the Galaxy S8's heyday, so things might have changed since but:

I can see it from a business perspective being super low cost and having just the cost of a monitor, keyboard, mouse and the Dex cable, and just having issued smartphones running the Knox platform for extra security for employees. It makes sense, but then, it just made a very limited Tizen-styled desktop UI that had basic apps for internet and some open source office stuff. App support was very limited, but it makes sense.

From a consumer item, however, it just gives you a larger than normal smartphone and a very limited desktop computer. You get the worst of both worlds. That said, I can only hope Samsung has improved the platform since the S8. Techincally I can to the same thing with a Android 2.1 phone or tablet from 2009, using mini-HDMI out plus an OTG cable, but that's an even worse experience. Just saying it was being done in 2009.

 

[sracer]

I briefly looked up DeX. I guess it does more than just provide HDMI.
Amazon tablets no longer cast to a streaming device, including my original 2017 Fire tablet.
Nothing streams to Apple TV that doesn’t have an Apple logo.
My Samsung Galaxy Tab A streams to my Roku and Fire TV stick.
Linux always kicks my backside. I’ve recently learned newer Chrome devices can install Linux apps.
The videos I’ve seen are from 2020 and Linux was still in Beta.
I’m not convinced the Play Store is a plus for a Chrome device. Maybe a tablet or 2 in 1.
Some lazy developers make phone only portrait mode apps.
For me, installing desktop Linux apps on a Chrome device would work for me, instead of trying to learn Linux.
I’m not a fan of the Chrome browser. I prefer Firefox.
Don’t want a bunch of Linux apps.
Do not want a Mac or Windows box. Chrome is hopefully an easier alternative to going all in on Linux.
Still want a desktop screen some of the time, with keyboard and mouse.
Typing this on my iPad and predictive text stinks. I should consider turning it off.

Just an FYI, if you install Google services on a Fire tablet you CAN cast to a streaming device. I regularly do it on my Fire 7 and HD 8 (and the HD 10 when I owned one)

 

[jimimac71]

Just an FYI, if you install Google services on a Fire tablet you CAN cast to a streaming device. I regularly do it on my Fire 7 and HD 8 (and the HD 10 when I owned one)

I have the Play Store and associated files installed on my 2019 Fire 10. I will have to check it out again, but am happy with what my Samsung can do.
As for Android tablets being dead, not as long as Amazon still makes them.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Amazon tablets are laggy enough out the gate. I can't imagine how bad it is with the heavy usage of Play Store/Google Play Services added to it. Those two are the first things I disable on any Android device, just after disabling software updates.

You all should look at the level of permissions for just Play Services. It's scary. Disabling it on my Note II nets 2 days total battery life, over what would normally be 8-12 hours standby with it enabled.